MAHOPAC — Kenneth Storen, a 1987 graduate of Mahopac High School, is trying to save the world — one child at a time.

A trained teacher, he enrolled in the Peace Corps in 1999 and stayed for three years in Lesotho, Africa, educating orphaned children and working with HIV/AIDS support groups. After his assignment ended in 2002, he remained in the African nation working for the Near East Foundation to further help children left as orphans by the disease.

"You look into the eyes of a child and can't turn away. I have seen them turn from sickness to health," Storen, 35, said while visiting family in Mahopac during the holidays. On Jan. 7, he returns to Lesotho — a hilly, rugged nation slightly smaller than the state of Maryland and landlocked by South Africa — hoping he can fund a life-saving project of his own.

While continuing to work as country director for the New York-based foundation, he has turned his three-bedroom home into Touching Tiny Lives, a safe house for homeless children. He is raising money through an initiative called Six Degrees of Love, based on the concept that everyone is connected to everyone else in the world through friends of friends.

In Storen's case, he has taken six young orphans into his home. A few are younger than 2 years old. Friends and volunteers help him care for them.

Storen said he hopes to raise $100,000 while visiting New York to fund a permanent home for children before May — when winter arrives in Lesotho.

St. John's the Evangelist, the Mahopac church where the Storen family has worshipped for many years, has adopted the project. Tomorrow, church leaders will ask parishioners for contributions after each Mass to help Storen's project.

Longtime family friend John McNamara of Mahopac said he already made a contribution and would encourage others to do the same.

"He is an amazing and inspiring young man," McNamara said of Storen.

Dorothy Brady of Briarcliff Manor agrees. She and her husband, Walter, also friends of the Storens, also have solicited contributions on his behalf.

"There are young people out there who are doing wonderful things and he is one of them," she said. "It is devastating to hear of these children. There is such a horrible epidemic in Africa."

Storen, who has a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and a master's degree in education from the University of Colorado in Boulder, said when he joined the Peace Corps he asked to be assigned anywhere except Africa.

"I thought it was a big, hot place," said Storen, who had just spent a year living in Colorado and enjoys mountain climbing.

Actually, he explained, there are changing seasons in Africa, though they are reversed from New York. He said the culture is rich and the people are friendly. He has learned the local language, Sesotho.

He continues, though, to miss local pizza. This past week, he said, he has eaten a few slices.

His father, Dennis Storen, said his son has always defended the oppressed.

"As a kid he didn't like it when others bullied a weaker child. He always stepped forward," Storen's dad recalled.

Near East Foundation president Ryan LaHurd said Storen has taken on a difficult job and is inspiring other workers, even his bosses.

"There are so many people dying of AIDS and the families can't take care of these kids," he said. "Sometimes it feels like you are spitting into the ocean. But to Ken, one life is worth saving, and he will do everything he can. We are fortunate to have him with us."

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How to help

Donations may be sent to Near East Foundation, 420 Lexington Ave., Suite 2516, New York, NY 10170. Please write Six Degrees of Love/Lesotho in the memo portion of the check. For information, contact www.six degreesoflove.org or the foundation at www.neareast.org or 212-867-0064. Lesotho at a glance History: Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho in 1966 when it gained independence from the United Kingdom. Its history includes 23 years of military rule and a violent uprising in 1998 that was quelled by South African intervention. Parliamentary elections were held in 2002. Population: 2 million people, including nearly 100,000 orphans. It is estimated that 31 percent of the population is HIV positive.

When this story was posted in December 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:

The World's Broken Promise to our ChildrenFormer Director Carol Bellamy, now head of Unicef, says that the appalling conditions endured today by half the world's children speak to a broken promise. Too many governments are doing worse than neglecting children -- they are making deliberate, informed choices that hurt children. Read her op-ed and Unicef's report on the State of the World's Children 2005.

Our debt to Bill MoyersFormer Peace Corps Deputy Director Bill Moyers leaves PBS next week to begin writing his memoir of Lyndon Baines Johnson. Read what Moyers says about journalism under fire, the value of a free press, and the yearning for democracy. "We have got to nurture the spirit of independent journalism in this country," he warns, "or we'll not save capitalism from its own excesses, and we'll not save democracy from its own inertia."

Is Gaddi Leaving? Rumors are swirling that Peace Corps Director Vasquez may be leaving the administration. We think Director Vasquez has been doing a good job and if he decides to stay to the end of the administration, he could possibly have the same sort of impact as a Loret Ruppe Miller. If Vasquez has decided to leave, then Bob Taft, Peter McPherson, Chris Shays, or Jody Olsen would be good candidates to run the agency. Latest: For the record, Peace Corps has no comment on the rumors.

The Birth of the Peace CorpsUMBC's Shriver Center and the Maryland Returned Volunteers hosted Scott Stossel, biographer of Sargent Shriver, who spoke on the Birth of the Peace Corps. This is the second annual Peace Corps History series - last year's speaker was Peace Corps Director Jack Vaughn.

Charges possible in 1976 PCV slayingCongressman Norm Dicks has asked the U.S. attorney in Seattle to consider pursuing charges against Dennis Priven, the man accused of killing Peace Corps Volunteer Deborah Gardner on the South Pacific island of Tonga 28 years ago. Background on this story here and here.

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Story Source: The Journal News.com, NY

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Lesotho; Orphans; NGO's; Service

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